In my opinion, when going to a coastal beach town where the seafood is supposedly caught fresh daily, one would expect that their meal in most locally owned and run places would be top notch. Unfortunately for downtown Lewes, DE Jerry’s Seafood falls considerably short.

Seven adults and two children were seated at a table nearest the door to the kitchen. In all fairness, my wife & I arrived later, but still who puts two small kids near the kitchen door? I saw lots of empty oyster shells being brought back, so my assumption was that they must be good. WRONG! The seven meaty oysters tasted just short of fresh. Nobody else at the table wanted any part of them. I struggled to get most of them down, but eventually gave up.

They have Samuel Adams Summer Ale on tap which was a nice way to wash away the taste of the oysters. I’ll reiterate the fact that my wife & I arrived after the rest of the table and also ordered after the rest of the table, yet for some reason we got our entrees first. Normally I’d laugh this off, but there my two hungry nephews were waiting patiently for their food too.

I got their famous crab cake sandwich with pasta salad for a measly $16 (sarcasm.) The pasta salad was decent, but the crab cake was hit and miss. Some bites tasted great, others tasted like defrosted fake crab. Confusing, and not enjoyable. My wife seemed to be enjoying her mixed green salad, while I supplemented my sandwich with some of my nephew’s fried shrimp – which, by the way may not have been shrimp at all.

After our plates were cleared the checks were brought out broken up by couple/family (I guess my in-laws requested this earlier?) with 20% gratuity added to each check. The service was poor. The food was sub par. At best I would have given them a 15% tip. I do not like being forced into giving any tip at all. Leaves a bad taste in my mouth – not unlike the oysters.

My wife’s family rents a house in Lewes every summer. We will return next summer, but you can rest assured we’ll be skipping Jerry’s.

Pacifico
269 Pacific Street
Brooklyn, NY 11201-5719
(718) 935-9090

I don’t know why I continue to torture myself trying to enjoy a meal at Pacifico located on Pacific Street, just off of Smith Street in Boerum Hill. The food is not bad, and the drinks are usually refreshing and potent. But for whatever reason they still cannot get the service right.

Pacifico is located caddy-cornered to what was once Trout, Gravy, & Since 1963. In a post I wrote for Eating Brooklyn I described Since 1963 as a complete train wreck. All the other restaurants are now out of business, and something else is being constructed behind the plywood barricades, and for some reason Pacifico has managed to stay in business while lacking the ability to improve their service in one of the pickiest neighborhoods in New York City.

Pacifico House Margarita

My wife and I decided to have lunch there this past weekend – she was craving fish tacos. We were pressed for time, and we live right down the street, so convenience won. We were seated quickly in their outside dining area. It was packed with the usual crowd – mostly locals & Manhattanites thinking they’re slumming it in Brooklyn. The hostess brought us menus and scampered off. It was a good 5 minutes before our drink order was taken. Our waiter made a point to tell us that the servers were changing over, so he didn’t want to take our food order. Frankly, it’s not my concern who is going to take my order, as long as somebody does. He could sense our glares, I’m sure and ended up taking our orders.

A little while (8 minutes or so) later the drinks came. My wife ordered an iced tea that tasted like it had been made from a sugary mix. My house margarita tasted like tequila mixed with a splash of water, and a hint of lime. I prefer a bit more flavor in a margarita. We ordered entrees – me, a tostada with shrimp and chorizo, and the wife the baja tacos.

chips & salsa

We also asked to start with a basket of chips and salsa. Our waiter passed by 6 times without our chips, so we asked another to get them for us. Nobody should have to wait 15 minutes to get a basket of chips, but we did. he finally brought them, but without the salsa. He had to go back for our salsa, but not before he visited 3 other tables to give them their checks. At this point I was seething, but was actually calmed momentarily by what is actually decent salsa. Theirs is smooth and spicy, rather than chunky and fresh.

The table next to us ordered their food before we did even though we got there before them, but we ended up getting our food before they did. Again, consistently inconsistent…

Shrimp & Chorizo Tostada

My tostada wasn’t half bad. Mild chorizo. Tasty grilled shrimp. Boring corn – none of that butter and crumbly cheese that they usually put on the corn. For $14 I was also hoping for something a little bigger. I finished this in the time it took me to pour my water.

My wife took a little longer on her tacos, and she seemed to be enjoying them more than I did my meal.

Baja Fsh Tacos

When she was done I flagged down our new waitress (oh yeah, the first guy had gone) and asked for our check. The table behind us even complained to her about the other waiter. Her excuse for him was that he had finals to study for…hmm, not the customer’s problem, don’t you think? A good 8-9 minutes passed before we got our check. I looked over the numbers quickly, and gave her my card. I did not want her disappearing again. I was ready to leave.

In a neighborhood where restaurants come and go over less severe infractions, and considerably better food it’s shocking that a place like Pacifico can survive. Perhaps it’s because of the quality outdoor space. Perhaps it’s the overly accomodating owner. Sarcasm…but that’s another story.